Love at First Bite (1979)

This vampire spoof has Count Dracula moving to New York to find his Bride, after being forced to move out of his Transylvanian castle. There with the aid of assistant Renfield, he stumbles ... See full summary »

Director:

Stan Dragoti

Writers:

Robert Kaufman (screenplay), Robert Kaufman (story)

Stars:

George Hamilton, Susan Saint James, Richard Benjamin

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 3 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
George Hamilton	...	Count Dracula
Susan Saint James	...	Cindy Sondheim
Richard Benjamin	...	Dr. Jeff Rosenberg
Dick Shawn	...	Lt. Ferguson
Arte Johnson	...	Renfield
Sherman Hemsley	...	Reverend Mike
Isabel Sanford	...	Judge
Barry Gordon	...	Flashlight Vendor
Ronnie Schell	...	Guy in Elevator
Bob Basso	...	T.V. Repairman
Bryan O'Byrne	...	Priest
Michael Pataki	...	Mobster
Hazel Shermet	...	Lady in Elevator
Stanley Brock	...	Cab Driver
Danny Dayton	...	Billy

Storyline

This vampire spoof has Count Dracula moving to New York to find his Bride, after being forced to move out of his Transylvanian castle. There with the aid of assistant Renfield, he stumbles through typical New York city life situations while pursuing Cindy Soundheim. But her boyfriend, Doctor Jeff Rosenberg, realizes she is under the influence of a vampire, and tries his bumbling best to convince police Lt Ferguson of what is going on, and to help him stop Dracula.

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Plot Keywords:

dracula | vampire | restaurant | reference to nadia comaneci | airplane | 

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Taglines:

I don't drrrink vine, and I don't smmooke sheet.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

Isabel Sanford and Sherman Hemsley starred together in The Jeffersons (1975).

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Goofs

After biting the wino and waking up with a hangover, Dracula says "Vat vas dat eediot drinking? It tastes like the Volga River at low tide!" The Volga doesn't flow through or near Romania, so a Romanian count wouldn't be familiar with the flavor of its water. And the Volga empties into the Caspian Sea, an endorheic basin which isn't connected to the oceans, and doesn't experience tides.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Count Dracula: Shh! Children of the night, shut up!

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Alternate Versions

The TV version has an additional scene of Vlad being seduced by a lonely housewife on the subway

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Connections

References Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

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Soundtracks

Dancin' Through the Night
Words and Music by Charles Bernstein, Joe Long, Robbie Adcock, Steve Hines
Produced by Joe Long and Robbie Adcock for Rolling Coaster Productions
Disco Midnight - Mix by Richie Rivera

User Reviews

This was great on the Big Screen, but the VHS was edited so heavily, it lost all its magic.

Hamilton is genuinely funny in this movie. That is much more than I can say for the next one he did, Zorro, the Gay Blade. It was atrocious. But in this one, he was honestly good, as was Susan St. James. Her success on television in my opinion stemmed from her performance in this movie. MacMillian and Wife was a wonderful series, but she shined brightest in this movie.

The VHS release, however, has one major change I neither understand, nor can stomach. That wonderful climax where the two of them are dancing to the song, "I Love the Nightlife" and he is attempting to use his Vampyric powers on Suntime (St. James), has been negatively altered!

It now no longer contains that memorable song and the soundtrack has been changed to another song for that scene. I was highly disappointed with this change! It degraded the quality of the experience to the point of making it worthless!

If you can find this movie in its original format (before the change, that is) this movie rates an 8.2/10.

After the change, it's not worth a 1.0/10 from...

the Fiend :.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 April 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dracula Sucks

Filming Locations:

The Langham Apartments - 715 S Normandie Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$43,885,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$43,885,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP), Melvin Simon Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1